Renewed



C. J. KLEIN. ATTACHING DEVICE FOR LAMP SOCKETS, 6L0. APPLICATION FILED FEB. 24. I9I3- RENEWED DEC. 24. 1915.

Patented Aug. 1, 1916.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CI-IABLES J. KLEIN, OF MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN, ASSIGNOB TO THE CUTLER-HAMMER MFG. CO., OF MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN, A CORPORATION OF WISCONSIN.

ATTACHING DEVICE FOR LAMP-SOCKETS, 8w.

Application filed February 24, 1913', Serial No. 750,259. Renewed December 24, 1915. Serial No. 68,580.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES J. KLEIN, a citizen of the United 'States, residing at Milwaukee, in the county of Milwaukee and State of Wisconsin, have invented new and useful Improvements in Attaching Devices similar devices, and more particularly to improved means for securing the same to supports.

pable of use with supports varying in screwthread pitch and dlameter.

A further object is to provide simple and ellicient means for securing lamp sockets and similar devices to their supports comprising few parts easily manufactured and produc ing a substantial and durable structure.

Other objects and advantages will hereinafter appear.

In order to disclose the invention fully and clearly, I have illustrated several embodiments of the same in the accompanying drawings wherein,

Figure 1 is a sectional view of a lamp shell cap, a bushing carried thereby, a collar, a husk and a fixture nipple in attached relation; Fig. 2 shows the same parts separated; Fig. 3 is a top view taken on the line H of Fig. 1, partially broken away to show the apertures in the cap; and, Figs. 4, and 6 illustrate some of the possible modifications of the locking means. Y 1

Figs. 1, 2 and? illustrate the preferred form of structure. They show a lamp socket cap 1, having a solid tubular bushing or neck 2 of malleable material at its upper end. The term solid bushing in this de- Speclflcation 01' Letters Patent.

scription is used as distinguishing from a split or divided bushing and includes all forms of circumferentially continuous or unbroken attaching members. The bushing 2 is threaded interiorly to engage a threaded support and has its wall 3 preferably conically tapered outwardly. A collar 4 has an opening at its lower end of a diameter suflicient to permit the upper end of the bushing to enter therein. The collar is provided on its inner face, and preferably at points below its transverse axis, with a plurality (in this instance four) of preferably sharp-pointed knobs, or projections 5. The upper end of the collar 4 is referably provided with an opening of a diameter to clear the threads of a fixture nipple but to engage any enlargement or shoulder of the fixture above the nipple. An ordinary fixture 6 is shown having a shouldered base 7 and threaded nipple 8 to which the lamp socket is to be attached.

The operation of the structure described is as follows: The collar 4 is preferably first placed upon the bushing 2, which is then screwed on the nipple 8 of the support. As the cap and bushing are screwed home on the nipple the top of the collar 4 abuts the shoulder 7 of the support and the inwardly extending projections 5 on the collar bite into and grip the sides of the tapered bushing with an ncreasing pressure as the parts are joined, thereby locking them against accidental separation. The threads of the bushing are thus stronglyv compressed, at a plurality of points, against the fixture nipple, as clearly shown at points 5' ,in Fig. 3, without being mutilated, however, since the nipple acts as a mandrel. It will be noted that one or more of the upper; interior threads of the bushing engage the vthreads of the nipple before the pro ections of the encircling collar begins to bite into the tapered sides of the bushing. The top of the latter thus retains its accurate circular shape and easy primary engagement with the nipple is always assured even after the bushing has been attached and detached anuinber of times.

A further advantage of this device is that even after the parts are firmly secured together, it is always gossible, due to the gradual tightening o .the parts, to turn the bushing at least an additional half revofore attachment the diameters or screw pitches do not accurately correspond.

The connection between the lamp shell cap l and the threaded bushing secured thereto,

as shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3, is especially advantageous in cooperation with the other features of the device. This connection is made by providing the lamp shell cap with a series of apertures 10 cut therein, preferably in a row, around the periphery of the cap and preferably in an oblique face thereof, as at 11. The bushing is made sepa- -rately and preferably of thicker metal than the cap to permit more easily the tapering of the sides, "as above mentioned. Around the lower end of the bushing is provided a notched flange 12 with tongues 13 come.

' sponding in number and spacing to the apertures 10 in the shell cap. In assembling, the tongues 13 are inserted in the apertures 10 and'clenched on the inside of the cap, as at 14, to make a secure connection between the parts. Among the advantages of this improved method of connection are increased strength and simplicity in manufacture. As the bushing when operated, tightly engages the fixture nipple, the resistance torotation is materially increased with a consequent increased strain between the bushing and cap. By placing the apertures 10 in the capon its oblique face an increased and strengthened bearing surface is presented for the bushing tongues, which counter-balances the increased strain. Furthermore, the bent ends of the bushing tongues on the inside of the cap are adapted to engage an operating tool, such as a screw-driver, by which the bushing may be screwed onto the support. The strain.

of rotation thus falls mainly on the thick ened tongues, reinforced by being seated in the cap, as described, and any liability of stripping the connection of the cap and bushing is overcome.

In Figs. 1 and 2 a husk 9 is shown in dotted lines as used in connection with the device. Obviously, the husk may be used or dispensed with at will. It is here shown for the reason that its use is possible in a peculiarly eflicient manner with the device 'described, since the parts may be assembled and adjusted without inconvenience or difficulty from a point axially in line with and beyond the socket cap and without the application. of set screws, which are often inaccessible on account of lack of space.

The modification shown in Fig. 4 may be used for attachment to a fii ture pipe having no shoulder above its threaded nipple and in this form the collar 4 is provided with an inwardly extending threaded flange 15 at its upper end which screws on the nipple instead of slipping thereover. The structure and operation in otherrespects remain similar to that'already described.

If preferred, the bushing may be made cylindrical, as shown in Fig. 5, wherein the threaded bushing 2 has cylindrical sides 16 adapted to cooperate with a collar 4 having on its inner face a plurality of downwardly tapered projecting ridges 17. When the cap is attached to the fixture in this case the tapered ridges 17 of the collar grip and bite into the wall of the bushing to compress the same at these points and thus lock the parts together.

The modification shown in Fig. 6 has a cylindrical bushing 2, similar to that of Fig. 5, but provided with a plurality of out wardly projecting knobs 18. The collar 4 is formed in this instance with an inner conical face 19 so that in operation the unyield- As many changes could be made in the above construction and many apparently widely different modifications of this in-- vention could be made without departing from the spirit thereof, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description, or shown in the accompanying drawing, shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense' What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A lamp socket cap having a circumferentially continuous threaded bushing for attachment to a cylindrical threaded support and means acting upon said bushing during its attachment to said support to tighten the former upon the latter.

2. A lamp socket cap having a circumferentially continuous threaded bushing for attachment to a threaded support and means acting to compress said bushing as it is threaded onto said support.

3. A lamp socket cap having a circumferentially continuous bushing for attachment to a support and a member engaging said bushing to compress the same tachment to said support, the active face of one of said engaging elements being tapered.

u on its atmainder thereo 4. A lamp socket cap having a threaded bushing to thread onto a support and means 6. A lamp socket ca having a threaded bushing to be .threade onto a support and a member acting upon said bushing when attached to said support to contract said bushing at spaced oints without efiecting contraction th ereo between said points.

7. In combination, a lamp socket cap having a threaded bushing, and means cooperatlng with the latter upon attachment thereof to a support to compress said bushing at a plurality of points spaced from each other and from the end of'said bushing, whereby the symmetry of the end of the latter is preserved.

8. A lamp socket cap having a threaded bushing and means acting thereon during attachment thereof to a support to contract the same upon such su port without contraction of the outer end of said bushing.

9. In a lamp socket for attachment to a threaded fixture nipple, in combination, a casing cap and means carried thereby for automatically locking the same to the fixture nipple during attachment, said means comprising interfitting annular bushing and ocking members, 0 circumferentially continuous and the inner member bein threaded and having a yieldable wall to %i screwed thereon.

10. In combination, a lamp socket cap having'a circumferentially continuous bushing member and a member cooperable therewith and with a support tofirmly secure said bushing to the support, one of said members having a tapered wall and the other having a plurallty of projections to engage said wall. e

11. In combination a lamp socket cap provided with a yiel in circumferentially continuous bushing having a.conically tap pere'd active face and an unyielding collar aving a plurality of bushing.

-rality of apertures. therein, and a th of the latter being ndwith the fixture nipple as rojections thereon. adapted to engage an press upon said 12. In combination, a lamp socket cap provided with a solid bushing threaded in -teriorly, and a collar cooperating with the latter to radially compress the same at a plurality of spaced pomts u on attachment thereof to a support, said co lar being held against longitudinal movement by the suport. 13. In a device of the nature disclosed, in

combination, a lamp shell ca having a plurality of apertures therein, a ushin having 'a flange provided with tongues, sai tongues passing through said apertures and being clenched within said cap, and means adapted to hold said bushing in position upon attachment of the latter to a support.

14. In a device of the nature disclosed, in combination, a lamp shell cap having a pluushin having a flange provided with tongues, sai tongues being adapted to enter said apertures and be clenched therein to form notches whereby said bushing may be engaged to be rotated.

15. In a device of the nature disclosed, in

. c0mbination, a lamp shell cap having a.plu-

rality of aperturesm an oblique face thereof, and a bushin having a flange rovided with ton ues, sai tongues being a apted to enter said apertures and be clenched therein to form notches whereby said bushing may be engaged to be rotated.

16. In combination, an exteriorly threaded member, an annular ember of malleable metal threaded interiorly. for screwing upon said first mentioned member, an means to radially indent the walls of said annular member at one or more spots of restricted area as the same is threaded upon said first mentioned member. 7

17. In combination, a support having a threaded ortion, a casin cap having a bushin threaded interior y for screwing upon e threaded portion of said supspplrl't, and means to inherently press said bu g against the threads of sa1d support at one or more oints of restricted area surrounded by re latively unpressed areas as said bushing is screwed u u said support.

In wltness whereo I have hereunto subscribed my name in the presence of two witnesses. v

. CHARLES J. KLEIN. Witnesses:

FRANK H. HUBBARD, LEONARD A. WATSON. 

